Toilet system with a toilet pan

ABSTRACT

A toilet system which can be rinsed by a rinsing device. A pipe is connected to the toilet pan and leads to a sanitation pipe. Means are provided for transporting a suction material from the toilet pan into the pipe and into the sanitation pipe. Said means comprise two valves which are arranged in the pipe and a pressure chamber is disposed in-between. In order to suction the suction material from the toilet pan, low pressure is produced in the pressure chamber and used to transport said suctioned material. The pressure chamber is embodied as a piston cylinder and the piston is connected to a controllable drive in order to produce the high and low pressure. The inventive toilet system enables rinsing to occur using a very small amount of water and which can be adapted to different toilet pans.

[0001] The invention relates to a toilet system with a toilet pan, whichcan be flushed by a flushing arrangement, having a conduit which isconnected to the toilet pan and leads to a waste-disposal conduit,having means for transporting a suction-extraction substance from thetoilet pan into the conduit and into the waste-disposal conduit, themeans having, in the conduit, two valves and, between the latter, apressure chamber in which it is possible to produce a negative pressure,for the suction extraction of the substance from the toilet pan, and apositive pressure, for transporting the substance, once extracted bysuction, into the waste-disposal conduit.

[0002] Up until now, toilet systems in which the suction-extractionsubstance is extracted by means of a vacuum have been known, inparticular, in vehicles, for example in railroad cars and RVs. Forexample, WO 92/18713 discloses a toilet system in which an arrangementfor producing negative pressure has an intermediate tank and acollecting tank. The abovementioned arrangement evacuates theintermediate tank in order to produce negative pressure, with the resultthat, with a valve in a conduit being open, the substance is taken intothe intermediate tank. Collecting tanks require a large amount of spaceand have to be emptied. They are not desirable for domestic use.

[0003] EP 0 887 478 discloses a toilet system in which a tank islikewise provided. A diaphragm pump is used to produce a partial vacuumin the tank, this resulting in a suction-extraction action.

[0004] EP 0 806 527 discloses a flushing arrangement which has a hollow,cup-like closure element. The closure element interacts with an inletopening and an outlet opening, which are both open or closed in eachcase.

[0005] Toilet systems with a collecting tank in each case haveadditionally been disclosed by EP 0 704 372 and EP 1 022 399.

[0006] EP 0 763 633 A1 discloses a vacuum toilet which, in the dischargeconduit, has a pressure chamber between two valves. By virtue of thenegative pressure in this chamber, when a valve on the inlet side isopened, suction-extraction substance is sucked from the toilet pan,through the discharge conduit into this chamber. Once the two valveshave been switched over, pressure forces the substance from the chamberinto a further conduit. An ejector pump which is operated withcompressed air is provided in order to evacuate the chamber. A foldingbellows in the pressure chamber forms a flexible membrane and serves asa sealing means, and is intended to prevent foul air from passingoutward out of the discharge conduit. The production of the negativepressure causes a spring to be stressed, the spring building up apressure when relieved of stressing. The problem with this toilet systemis that sealing the chamber by means of a flexible membrane involveshigh outlay and is fault-prone. In order to build up a negativepressure, an ejector pump requires a comparatively long period of time.In addition, the pressure which can be achieved in order to expel thesubstance from the chamber is very limited. This toilet system is notlikely to prove successful in practice.

[0007] The object of the invention is to provide a toilet system of theabovementioned type which, with low water consumption, is functionallyreliable and durable.

[0008] This object is achieved, in the case of a toilet system of thegeneric type, in that the pressure chamber is designed as a pistoncylinder, and the piston is connected to a controllable drive in orderto produce the positive pressure and negative pressure. In the case ofthe toilet system according to the invention, the negative pressure andpositive pressure are produced by movement of the piston. This allows avery quick build-up of a negative pressure, for example within afraction of a second. A positive pressure may likewise be produced veryquickly and, in addition, with a positive pressure of more than 1 bar,for example approximately 2 bar. A further advantage of the toiletsystem according to the invention is that the displacement, and thus thevolume of the substance which can be extracted by suction, can beadjusted precisely. It is also possible for two or moresuction-extraction cycles to be carried out one after the other. Asatisfactory flushing operation is thus possible with a very smallamount of water. The piston of the piston cylinder here may itself serveas sealing means for preventing foul air from escaping outward. There isthus no need for a flexible membrane or the like. According to adevelopment of the invention, the piston is moved by means of anelectric motor. In conjunction with a control arrangement, this allowsprecise control of the suction-extraction and expelling operations.These operations, in addition, can be adjusted and adapted to therespective toilet pan.

[0009] An exemplary embodiment of the invention is explained in moredetail hereinbelow with reference to the drawings, in which:

[0010]FIG. 1 shows, schematically, a toilet system according to theinvention,

[0011]FIG. 2 shows a further schematic illustration of the toilet systemaccording to the invention,

[0012]FIG. 3 shows, schematically, the course of a flushing operationover time, and

[0013] FIGS. 4-6 show, schematically, suction-extraction substance beingtaken in and expelled.

[0014] According to FIGS. 1 and 2, the toilet system has a toilet pan 5which is of hopper-like design and has a bottom outlet 5 a. This outlet5 a, however, is comparatively small and has a cross section of, forexample, 30 mm². Connected to the underside of this outlet 5 a, in aconduit 29, is a suction line 6, which likewise has a comparativelysmall cross section. The toilet pan 5 can be flushed by a flushingarrangement 1, and has a flushing pipe 3 through which flushing watercan be directed into the interior of the toilet pan 5. The flushingarrangement 1 may be a flushing cistern or some other suitable flushingarrangement. The essential factor, however, is that use is made of acomparatively small amount of flushing water, for example less than 1liter. The flushing is triggered by a button 2 or by some other suitabletriggering arrangement. Contactless or automatic triggering is alsoconceivable here.

[0015] The suction line 6 contains a valve 7 which, in a closed state,closes off the suction line 6 and, in the open state, releases thethrough-passage to a chamber 12 of a piston cylinder 8. The valve 7 iscontrolled, via a signal line 24, by a control arrangement 26.

[0016] The piston cylinder 8 has a housing 9, in which a piston 10 canbe displaced to a limited extent in the directions of the double arrow19. The piston 10 subdivides the housing 9 into a bottom chamber 12 andinto a top chamber 13. The piston 10 seals these two chambers 12 and 13in relation to one another. For this purpose, an encircling seal 10 a isarranged on the outside of the piston 10. The piston 10 is moved by amotor 14, for example an electric motor, and is connected to the piston10 via a piston rod 11 which, as can be seen, has one end projecting outof the housing 9. During movement of the piston 10, by means of valves22 and 23, air is expelled into the surroundings from the top chamber 13and/or fresh air is drawn in from the ambient air. The valves 22 and 23may be straightforward flap valves. Power is supplied to the motor 14via a power line 15. Power is likewise supplied to the controlarrangement 26 via this line. The control arrangement 26 may also beintegrated in the motor 14.

[0017] The bottom chamber 12 has an outlet 12 a which, as can be seen,is arranged at the lowermost point of the bottom chamber 12 and to whicha pressure line 17 is connected. The pressure line 17 may be a flexiblehose or a fixed pipeline. Located in the vicinity of the outlet 12 a isa further valve 16, which is controlled, via a signal line 25, by thecontrol arrangement 26. In one state, the through-passage to thepressure line 17 is closed and, in the other state, this through-passageis free. The bottom chamber 12 forms a pressure chamber and this may beintegrated in the toilet pan 5 and form a unit therewith.

[0018] The pressure line 17 has a cross section which may correspondessentially to the cross section of the suction line 6. This crosssection is thus likewise comparatively small and may be compared, forexample, with that of a garden hose. It may be comparatively long, forexample a number of meters in length, and, according to FIG. 1, lead toa downpipe of a waste-disposal conduit 18. The pressure line 17preferably has a front end 17 a which projects comparatively deeply, forexample a number of meters, into a waste-disposal conduit 18. Thepressure line 17 is introduced into the waste-disposal conduit 18, forexample, by way of a lateral connector 18 a.

[0019] The operation of the toilet system according to the invention isexplained hereinbelow.

[0020] The rest state of the toilet system is shown in FIG. 2. Thevalves 7 and 16 are closed and the piston 10 is located in the bottomposition shown. When the toilet system is used, the flushing arrangement1 may be actuated for preliminary wetting of the inside 5 b of thetoilet pan 5. As a result of use, the suction-extraction substance 4collects in the toilet pan 5, the substance filling the suction line 6as far as the valve 7. Flushing is triggered by actuation of the button2. In this case, water passes through the flushing pipe 3 into thetoilet pan 5. The quantity of water used here is controlled via thecontrol means 26 and the signal line 27. One or more nozzles arepreferably provided for spraying the inside 5 b of the toilet pan 5.

[0021] Following spraying, the piston 10 moves approximately into theposition shown in FIG. 4. The uppermost position is preferably not quitereached here. Since the valves 7 and 16 are still closed, a negativepressure which is preferably less than, for example, 0.5 bar is thusproduced in a chamber 12′. At the same time, further flushing of thetoilet pan 5 can be triggered via the control arrangement 26.Approximately simultaneously, the valve 7 is opened comparativelyquickly, and thus essentially abruptly. The quick opening may be broughtabout, for example, by a prestressed spring (not shown here).Approximately simultaneously, flushing of the toilet pan 5 isinterrupted. The bottom chamber 12′ is large enough to be filledapproximately half with air and half with suction-extraction substance4. When the substance 4 is extracted by suction, the solids are reducedin size by suddenly flowing into the bottom chamber 12′, with the resultthat the substance 4′ extracted by suction is present in a state similarto a suspension. In FIG. 5, the arrow 28 shows the direction in whichthe substance 4 flows into the bottom chamber 12′. Located above thesubstance 4′ is an air cushion 21 which, as has been mentioned above,takes up approximately half the volume of the bottom chamber 12′.

[0022] Once the substance 4 has been extracted by suction, then thevalve 7 is closed and the piston 10 moves downward, the air cushion 21being compressed and a positive pressure of, for example, 2 bar beingproduced. The valve 16 is then opened and, as a result of the positivepressure, the substance 4′ is expelled into the pressure line 17 and,finally, into the waste-disposal conduit 18. The valve 16 is thenclosed. When the piston 10 is moved downward, fresh air from the ambientair is directed into the top chamber 13 via the valve 22. The pressureline 17 is usually filled, at least in part, with suction-extractionsubstance 4′. In order for this substance to be expelled as well, asecond flushing operation is preferably triggered. In this case, thetoilet pan 5 is flushed again and this flushing water, by means of theoperation explained above, is taken in and then expelled. By virtue ofthis further operation, the pressure line 17 is flushed through withwater and cleaned at least in part. This further flushing water passesinto the waste-disposal conduit 18.

[0023] The suction line 6 opens out preferably tangentially andpreferably also downward into the pressure chamber 12. This results inparticularly favorable dynamics for the suction-extraction substance 4and thus the flow of this substance 4 in and out of the cylinder 8. Thesubstance 4 flows tangentially, and in a downwardly directed manner,into the pressure chamber 12 and thus, as it were, flushes the cylinder8 and rotates in the pressure chamber 12. The substance 4 is thenexpelled. Since everything is in motion, it is possible to avoiddeposits in the pressure chamber 12. Particles which are neverthelessdeposited are flushed up again. Contact with the piston 10 and the sealis largely avoided.

1. A toilet system with a toilet pan (5), which can be flushed by aflushing arrangement (1), having a conduit (29) which is connected tothe toilet pan and leads to a waste-disposal conduit (18), having means(8) for transporting a suction-extraction substance (4) from the toiletpan (5) into the conduit (29) and into the waste-disposal conduit (18),the means (8) having, in the conduit (29), two valves (7, 16) and,between the latter, a pressure chamber (12) in which it is possible toproduce a negative pressure, for the suction extraction of the substance(4) from the toilet pan (5), and a positive pressure, for transportingthe substance (4), once extracted by suction, into the waste-disposalconduit (18), characterized in that the pressure chamber (12) isdesigned as a piston cylinder, and the piston (10) is connected to acontrollable drive (14) in order to produce the positive pressure andnegative pressure.
 2. The toilet system as claimed in claim 1,characterized in that the piston (10) is driven electromechanically. 3.The toilet system as claimed in claim 1 or 2, characterized in thatconnected to an outlet (12 a) of the pressure chamber (12) is a pressureline (17), through which the substance (4) is transported into thewaste-disposal conduit (18).
 4. The toilet system as claimed in one ofclaims 1 to 3, characterized in that a positive pressure which isgreater than 1 bar, preferably greater than 1.5 bar, is produced in thepressure chamber (12).
 5. The toilet system as claimed in one of claims1 to 4, characterized in that it is possible to adjust the stroke of thepiston (10).
 6. The toilet system as claimed in one of claims 1 to 5,characterized in that arranged between the toilet pan (5) and the pistoncylinder (8) is a suction line (6), which opens out tangentially intothe pressure chamber (12).
 7. The toilet system as claimed in one ofclaims 1 to 6, characterized in that arranged between the toilet pan (5)and the piston cylinder (8) is a suction line (6), which opens outobliquely downward into the pressure chamber (12).
 8. The toilet systemas claimed in one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the pressurechamber (12) forms a unit with the toilet pan (5).